Manmade Angel
by Rosolia
Summary: Razenshia, a normal woman from 20XX, suddenly finds herself reborn in the Victorian ages. With pieces of her memories forgotten, she struggles to grow up in the Phantomhive household with her new identity as Rika Michaelis. Growing up as a baby with memories of an adult is already hard but try living as a demon's daughter with the trio of idiots and the queen's guard dog.
1. Chapter 1

" _Razenshia," a soft voice called out, a chillingly amused edge in his voice. Fighting against the excruciating pain rippling through my body, I weakly lifted my head from the cold examination table. A man stood at the side of the table. His features obscured by the blinding light above me. His body shook with insanity, laughter as he rose both arms high in the air. "Oh Razenshia, my angel. You are the one who will end God's hateful reign upon this world he has forsaken."_

 _Tears pricked at the corners of my narrowing eyes. Even though I had long thrown away my trust in God, I couldn't stop my arm from weakly reaching up towards the light in a vein hope of being saved. Darkness engulfed my pleading mind._

The sound of muffled cries of pain shatters the darkness of sleep's cruel embrace. Wearily fluttering my eyes open, I find myself staring at a faded carousel of painted animals adorning the white ceiling above me. Confusion engulfs my mind as my eyes wonder the childish room in my tired stupor in an attempt to clear the haze of sleep from my mind. The room I lay in, only illuminated by the soft glow of the moonlight, is filled with stuffed animals and toys. It isn't until my eyes fall upon the unfamiliar reflection in the mirror that the pieces of my memory fall into place.

Gleaming, golden orbs stare back at me with unveiled disappointment. "And, I'm still in this body. Wonderful." My words annoyingly come out as intangible babbles, only adding to the surrealism of my situation. It's only been says since I found myself breathing my last breath, losing the luster of life from my eyes. I had accepted my early death with reluctance, having only lived a little over twenty-years. Who knew I would open my eyes again, this time in the body of an infant in the Victorian era. With odd topaz eyes and a tuft of silver tresses, I can only wistfully long for my normal life. Despite being born only days ago, my mother's hatred for me is painfully apparent. The ghost of her hands wrapping around my neck still lingers as I recount the many times she would stroll into my room with eyes deliriously shaking, murderous intent obvious in her glare. Each attempt has been thwarted by the servants who have been keeping an eye on their crazed mistress. As for my father, there's not much to say. My interaction with him up to this point is limited to the time of my birth. The minute he saw me, his eyes morphed from weary discontent to utter disgust. The only words he uttered to me were: "What kind of fucked up mister are you. I can't even sell you as a slave like the other girls." Rude.

I'm ripped away from my bitter memories as my door flings open, the hyperventilating figure of my mother bursting into my room. Her quivering eyes fall upon my still form. Stalking over to my unmoving body, she lets out a menacing crackle. "If I'm going to die," she gasps, her hands reaching out towards my neck, "I'm going to drag you to hell with me, you monster!" Wearily, I simply stared at the woman with uncaring eyes as her hands inched closer.

I classify myself as an opportunist, someone who will take advantage of any opportunity to the best of my abilities at all times. Therefore, I would rather not die again. The problem lies in the fact that I, in no way, can defend myself nor would this woman care to think sensibly.

Just as her hands wrap around my frail neck, a deafening gunshot rings through my room. My mother jerks away from me in favor of cradling her bleeding shoulder as she screeches out in agony. Standing behind her, shadows dance upon the faces of two figures. With a gun pointing at my mother and smoke steaming out of the silver barrel, a young boy stands with a single blue eye narrowed into a blazing glare. Behind him, a taller man draped in an immaculate tailcoat and amber eyes gleaming with amusement simply stares at the scene unfolding before him.

"Damn Queen's dog!" my mother hisses, venom dripping from each word. The boy seems to straighten his back with pride at her words.

"You and your husband have troubled the queen with your disgusting human auctioning. As the head of the Phantomhive family, I will kill anyone who causes the queen concern." With his hold declaration, the young boy again fires his gun, this time ending her rasps for mercy. The silence of the night returns as her limp body falls onto the floor with a heavy thud.

I realize that the normal response at this moment would be to cry with mournful sorrow at the death of my mother. However, after being threatened with death time after time by this woman, it's a bit difficult to summon any sympathy for her. Rather, I can't help but to a bit curious of the two figures.

Turning their attention to me, the boy and man gaze at me with cold eyes. I stared back at the young boy with pity, his one eye dimmed by the troubles no child should carry upon their shoulder. Perhaps seeing the superficial condolences in my eyes, the boy snarls as he pressed the warm barrel against my head. A small sigh of acceptance escapes my tiny lips as I watch the boy with unfazed eyes. The boys eye grows wide at my sigh, his mouth slightly parting with surprise. Glancing over at the man behind him, I can see intrigue pooling in his amber eyes as they flash an inhuman magenta.

Now, as I have stated, I am in no way dumb enough to take my second chance at life lightly. However, I also have little to lose, no loved ones to assets to my name. Therefore, dying now would be much better than losing everything later. And again, any resistance will only annoy the temperamental boy to end my life faster. I am not so naive to think that I'll be spared, the goal of their visit obvious. Why would they let the child of their targets live?

Therefore, it was my turn to gape with shock as the gun at my head is taken away. My eyes again settle on the boy as he tucked his gun away in his coat. "Sebastian. What is she?"

The man called Sebastian gazed at me with elated eyes, a sinister amusement laced within the pools of amber as he answered the boy. "Well she's mostly human but I can sense a small bit of her aura is out of place, though I'm unsure why that is." The boy was silent as he took in Sebastian's words, his eyes never leaving my own.

" _Kid, if I could talk, I'd give you a lesson on DNA mutations and how proteins decide your physical appearance. Auras don't exist. Science does though."_ I silently snort at the two, earning their attention once more.

"What-" the boy pauses for a moment, biting his lip as he listens to his conflict inner thoughts validate their points. "What is her name?"

"It seems that she was named Rika Welter." Wow, I didn't know that those good-for-nothing parents even gave me a name. The boy nods and gently lifts me from my wooden prison. His grasp on my body is so soft, I worry he might drop me as he holds me in his hands, almost afraid to bring me any closer.

"She will now be known as Rika Michaelis." Surprise captures Sebastian's expression for a brief moment before it morphed into intrigue. "This is an order: you will raise this child under the pretense that she is your daughter that your wife left you after her death. This will allow us to monitor her until we learn what she is, as well as keep away those pesky women who keep coming."

I bite back a bark of laughter as the last part of the boys reasoning while breathing out a quiet sigh of relief. I suppose this second life won't be as bad as I thought. Taking a dramatic bow on one knee, Sebastian smiled a devilish smile.

"Yes, my lord."


	2. Chapter 2

"Aw, look at Rika! She's trying to roll over!" The familiar cooing of the emerald eyed gardener broke me away from my frustrating workout. For days, I had been trying get my body to roll over without success. With a defeated huff, I allowed myself to flop back into my back and stare back up at the three pairs of ogling eyes towering above my crib.

"The little lady's been at it everyday," the blonde cook mused, a puff of smoke escaping his lips as they settled into an approving grin.

"She is just as hardworking as her father, yes!" blurted the excited maid, furiously nodding her pink head as she leaned in closer towards me. A pout tugged at my lips at the mention of the dark butler. After taking me in, I found myself awkwardly being cared for by Sebastian. The young master, who I learned was known as Ciel Phantomhive, had me pose as the daughter of a long distant relationship. After my supposed mother died due to a illness, Sebastian _begged_ Ciel to allow me to live with him in the Phantomhive manor. Which brings me to now. While this isn't my first time seeing the theatrical servants, this is the first time they've approached me without Sebastian nearby. "But she really doesn't look anything like Mr. Sebastian, does she."

"Didn't he say that she has a similar condition to albinism?" Finny and Mey-RIn tilted their heads in confusion, their gaze settling on Bard to urge him to continue explaining. "Well, basically something happened when she was born so that the color of her hair and eyes are off. I 'eard that people with albinism normally have white hair and red eyes though."

Letting out a synchronized, "Ohh," the other two servants nodded understandingly. Turning their gazes back to me, they seemed to take in my features once again.

" _I know I'm cute but could you not stare at me like that?"_ I snorted, small babbling noises taking the place of my intended words. A light pink dust painted over the three servants cheeks.

"Even so, she's so cute!" Finny gushed, scooping me into his arms. A surprised gasp escaped me as I tightened my chubby hands around his gardening gloves as tightly as I physically could. " _Damn baby muscles."_ A small flashback of him running into a tree in an attempt to catch a butterfly ran through my mind, the color draining from my face faster than the tree had fallen to it's demise.

"Oh, I heard that babies like to be thrown in their air, I did!" I let out a horrified squeak at Mey-Rin's suggestion.

" _Now, wait a minute! What about Finny's monstrous streng-"_ Bard's hearty laugh cut me off, as nodded at me strongly. Hope sparked in my eyes to see someone understood my fears.

"Looks like the little lady can't wait!" And then my hope died.

Urged on by the others, Finny slightly lowered. Taking the few seconds I had, I squeezed my eyes shut and sucked in a breath. With that, I was launched into the sky, my tiny body rapidly getting closer to the impending ceiling. Spurred on by my stubbornness, I bit my lip to hold back from crying out for help. Just as I mentally steeled myself for a painful landing on the ceiling, black flashed across my eyes as a pair of familiar arms carefully wrapped around me. Peaking an eye open, I could see the weary amber eyes I had grown to seek for protection. Seemingly without effort, the butler held me in one arm as we floated to the ceiling and used the other to lightly push us back down where the other servants flustered over my safety.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry Rika! I didn't mean to throw you so high!" Finny started to bawled as his eyes roamed over my tiny body in Sebastian's arms to look for any signs of injury. Calming down from the whole ordeal, I felt a pang of pity strum at my chest as his tearful apologies spilled from his mouth. Perhaps it was because I had never had a more sincere apology in my past life. Reaching out, I softly patted his cheeks in reassurance.

" _I'm fine, Finny. If you cry like that, I can't tell which one of us is the baby."_ The young gardener froze for a moment at my action before heavier tears fell from his eyes and he placed his gloved hand over my tinny one. " _Sheesh, what a crybaby."_

Our touching moment was broke by Sebastian's stern voice. "Now then, will one of you tell me why I came in to see Rika being thrown up to her death?" His usual pleasant tone was laced with annoyance, a combination I only heard when he spoke to the trio of idiots, as I've dubbed them. The servants stuttered amongst themselves to explain, their hesitation only bringing out more miasma from the awaiting butler.

" _Hey, don't be so hard on them. I didn't get hurt in the end and they obviously didn't mean it, Sebastian."_ I tried to cover for the three, only ending up with incoherent babbles. Sebastian didn't look my way, his glare hardening with each second passing. I sighed, deciding to take a different approach. Taking my hand away from Finny, I tugged on Sebastian's raven hair, finally earning his attention. Summoning my love for felines, I threw up hands up and let out my most endearing giggle. I did my best to wrap my hands around the dark butler's neck, only able to encircle part of it before snuggling my face into the crook of his neck. " _Come on, look at how adorable I'm acting. Lighten up."_

A sense of relief flooded my tense muscles as the dark aura pouring from Sebastian faded away. He pulled me away from his neck, meeting his amber eyes with mine. We silently studied each other, annoyance coaxing my lips into a pout as I found his expression unreadable. Our staring contest broke as Sebastian started chuckling, his gloved hand covering his lips. Confusion overtook my expression but I remained silent to see his next reaction.

"It seems Rika is helping you three out today. I'll let you off this once." A collection of sighs erupted from the servants as they all silently thanked me with quiet nods and smiles. "However, you will all have extra work to do for dawdling out here instead of doing your job." Grimaces contorted their faces of relief as they muttered out their reluctant agreements. Seemingly satisfied, Sebastian left with me in his arms.

Taking advantage of being an unquestionable baby, I stared at Sebastian with calculating eyes. It didn't take a genius to see that he wasn't normal, eyes flashing magenta and inhuman abilities aiding in his job as a butler for the Phantomhive household. His exchange between himself and the young master also bothered me. Ciel was already questionable with his serious demeanor ruining his childish appearance and his devotion to his family's duty only bringing further suspicion to me. While the other servants admired the "utter and complete trust" they had in each other, I couldn't agree with them. Sebastian and Ciel seemed to have complete faith in each other's personal motives rather than the person. There wasn't blind trust between them but the confidence that each other's selfish desires would keep each other just where they wanted.

The sound of knocking broke me out of my reverie. Sebastian had stopped before a door, me in one arm as the other was brought up to knock on the elegant wood. "Young master, I have brought Rika as you instructed." A muffled grunt sounded out from behind the door, prompting Sebastian to bring me inside the room. Sitting behind a desk buried under papers was Ciel, boredom conquering his slouched position in the large armchair. His blue eye glued onto me as I stared back, another contest starting up.

"Have you noticed her exhibit any other unusual traits other than her appearance?" Ciel asked, keeping his gaze on me.

"I have noticed that she's unusually much calmer than most infants when it comes to danger. Like when you pointed your gun at her, she was extremely calm dealing with the three stooges, even when Finny used his strength to throw her in the air." The young earl stayed silent, his express turning lost in thought as Sebastian continued in analysis of me. "She also seems to be quite the seductress," he chuckled. His knowing eyes gazed at mine for a second before returning to young Ciel.

" _Hey! I wouldn't call that seducing! More like … taking advantage of my natural given charms!"_ My defensive huffs babbled out as the innocent coos of a child, earning a curious glance from the young master.

"I see. Keep your eye on her, I don't like her eyes." Ciel turned to stare back into my orbs, his one eye blazing with distrust. "Not at all."

An argument bubbled in my throat but boiled away as a familiar glimmer of emotion sparked in his dull, blue eye. _Excitement_. Drowning in the cold ocean of blue, I saw a hint of giddiness that I had seen long ago.

* * *

" _What are you drawing?" The young boy turned to me as I broke the suffocating silence, winter winds accompanying my innocent question._

" _I'm drawing the wold that's purified from God's grasp."_

* * *

I could feel an icy grip of fear wrap around my chest, squeezing the breath from lungs as it freezes my heart. Desperate for the comfort of warmth, I buried my face into the closet source of warmth: Sebastain's chest. Peering curiously at me, a troubled frown tugged his lips down. Almost hesitantly, he stuck a gloved figure near me. Ignoring amused chuckle that threatened to rumble in my chest at his unexpected hesitance, I acknowledged onto his small effort to comfort me and slid my small hands around his finger.

Glancing up in thanks, my jaw dropped at the confused butler's speechless face. Eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement, he stared at me with conflicted eyes.

"It seems that even I cannot completely understand a strange infant such as yourself, Risa."


	3. Chapter 3

A giggle of delight tumbled from my lips as a cool breeze caressed my cheeks. This marks my first time being able to go outside since my birth, something I took for granted in my previous life. It had taken some time, but the trio had finally gotten used to caring for me, which resulted in them playing with me during their breaks. Today, Finny had miraculously managed to keep himself from killing any of the plants before his break, which is why he decided that he wanted to give me a tour of the gardens.

Remember the events that led to now, I couldn't help but to let out a sigh of pity and pat Finny's head. The gardener looked at me with confusion, happy to receive my attention but unsure of the reason of my sudden affection. "What's wrong, Rika? Could it be that you wanna get a better look at those flowers?" I directed my attention to the flowers Finny was pointing at, surprised to see a hedge of unmarred roses.

 _"Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't believe that you grew those. I'm sorry."_ Seemingly spurred on by my babbling, Finny started to boast about his day.

"I usually end up somehow killing these hedges Sebastian grows to help me, but today, I was able to water them without killing a single plant! Isn't that amazing, Rika!" Another sigh of pity bubbled up in my throat as the little gardener beamed at his accomplishment. I gave a silent prayer to the countless plants that have suffered by Finny's hands and another for Sebastian's sanity. As Finny carried me closer to the flowers, I noticed a few insects mooching on the petals. Never being a fan of bugs, even as an adult, I let out a small whine and pointed at the infected flower. Finny curiously approached it and paled as he saw the damaged petals. "Oh dear! I better go get some insect repellent." I nodded in agreement, freezing as I felt the childish man set me down in the grass. "Okay, wait right here, Rika. I'll only be a minute."

 _"Excuse me! You're going to leave a baby here? Without supervision?! Are you dumb?!"_ My frantic grumbles fell upon deaf ears as Finny rushed to the gardening shed, promising to be quick. I let out a defeated huff and glanced around. Maybe it was my small stature, but the world suddenly seemed to vast and large. Honestly, the manor looked like something straight from a fairytale, beautiful roses blooming to compliment the towering manor of ivory cement. My previous life was much simpler, my home being a small apartment for one. I suppose the one thing that's carried over from my last life is my tendency to attract the strangest people to me. Not a great trait, but definitely interesting.

As I was getting lost in my thoughts, a shadow suddenly loomed over me. I looked up, expecting to see the sunny gardener grinning at me. My voice went mute as a hooded figure glared down at me, features covered by shadows. Without giving me the chance to register my situation, I found myself in his ironclad grip. The wind lashed out at me as the figure carried me further and further away from the manor. I could see another figure rush out to where I had been, the distant echo of my name ringing out before the manor was out of sight. It didn't take long before I found myself staring at a rugged man, scars littering his body and face. A cigarette hung from his lips as he stared down at me.

"Why did you grab this maggot? I told you to get me the Phantomhive brat!" the scarred man bellowed, sending the cloaked figure into a trembling mess of stutters.

"I'm sorry boss! The other one was being guarded by his butler and I barely escaped with this one!" His excuse did little to extinguish the furry of the scarred man.

"I don't need defective tools." With that, a gunshot rang in my ears, the cloaked figure screaming out in agony before tumbling to the group. A pool of blood formed under him, as he writhed in pain, choking out pleas of mercy. They full upon deaf ears as another shot was made, silencing the pitiful man. The scarred man turned back towards me, my tiny body left upon a rotting, wooden chair. I could feel a dull ache in my back screaming at me for sitting in the uncomfortable chair when I haven't even been able to sit up by myself yet. "Someone get me a phone and connect me to the damn brat. We'll just use this one to lure that shit out before killing them both."

I could hear feet scrambling around in a rush before the large, vintage phone box was brought to the scarred man. A moment of silence passed before the man spoke. "Hey! If you want that baby of yours back in one piece, come to the abandoned mansion of the Blackwell's alone along with ten thousand dollars. If you don't hurry, you might find the corpse of this kid floating down a river." Without waiting for a response, the man slammed the phone back onto the receiver, shooing the trembling lackey away from a simple wave of his hands.

The scarred man sent me another glare before leaving the room. I stuck out my tongue in retaliation, relieved that he hadn't noticed or hadn't cared enough to beat me. I could hear the nervous shuffles of the other random henchmen that had been left in here, some approaching me. On grabbed my arm, yanking me up by my tender limbs. A shrill whine sounded from my throat, resulting in my being dropped to the rotting chair, which promptly collapsed and had me sprawled out in a while of wood. I could feel splinters digging into my skin, my face tightening in pain.

"Why hasn't this thing cried yet? I know a baby crying is annoying but this is just plain creepy," one of the henchmen spat, stepping away from me as I examined my limbs.

 _"Now that you mention it, I probably should be crying. Even adults would be bawling their eyes out if they were in this situation. Maybe it's because I've already come close to death some damn times already. Or maybe it's because I've already died once. Then again, even if I did cry, nothing would change. You guys would probably tape my mouth shut and that doesn't sound comfortable."_ I continued to gurgle out broken sounds to myself, halting as the door slammed open.

The scarred man stood in the doorway, this chest heaving up and down tiredly as he stormed over to me. Pain ripped through my body as he grabbed a fist full of my hair bringing me to his chest. In his other hand, a knife glimmered as he placed it at my throat. I bit back a squeal of pain and the blade slightly dug into my neck, a trickle of blood trailing down my neck.

The door was, again, flung open, this time to reveal the familiar figure of the dark butler. His impeccable smile was, as always, glued to his face, a splatter of blood staining his cheek. Sebastian's eyes studies the small room, the glowing violet I had seen on the night of my adoption. As they landed on my frame, I could see an unfamiliar emotion flash for a mere second before they slid closed.

"Thank you for taking such good care of my daughter, however it's time for her to return home for her nap." Sebastian bowed his perfect bow and swiftly made his way closer to me.

"Don't come any closer, you monster!" the scarred man screamed, his grip on my hair tightening. I hissed out in pain, only to be ignored by the frantic man. "I'll slice her head clean off! I'll do it! So don't come closer!" With each word, the man became more and more hysterical the onlookers becoming more and more uneasy about the situation. Finally realizing their presence, the scarred man bellowed out, "Kill him you retards!" At his command, a flurry of bullets were shot at Sebastian, their deafening sound silencing after a number of rounds were shot. Dust blanketed the doorway, and my heart skipped a beat at the possibility of Sebastian's death.

My worries were quickly thwarted as the dark butler stepped out of the cloud of rubble. Again the grip on my hair tightened and the blade sank deeper into my flesh. "What are you?!" An amused chuckle took over Sebastian at the man's question.

"Why, I am a mere butler of the Phantomhove household," Sebastian smiled, the word "fake" practically scrawled across his face. At that moment, a small dot zoomed past me, a small blast of wind following. A crunching sound followed and the grip on my hair loosened, along with the man's grip of his blade. Before I could make out with the floor, I found myself in the familar arms of my father. It was at that moment, I realized my heart was racing and tears had welled up in my eyes. Whether they were due to fear or due to pain, I couldn't tell, but everything slowed as I snuggled myself into Sebastian's chest, his unique sent acting as a tranquilizer.

A soft chuckle had me pulling away in embarrassment, my cheeks turning as I glared at the smiling butler, his fake smile stretching even wider than usual. In an attempt to forget my embarrassing moment of weakness, I turned my attention to my captor, surprised to see him bleeding out on the floor along with the other figures.

"Now, it's time we go home, Rika. I need to treat that cut on your neck and remove those splinters from your arms and legs." I tilted my head in confusion at Sebastian.

 _"Is it okay to just leave these dead bodies here? And how did you notice my splinters so fast?"_ Sebastian hummed out at my intangible babbles, absentmindedly stepping over the corpses littering the ground. I sighed, wondering how many sighs have left my lips today and how much happiness I had left. The thought about what my inhuman father could be crossed my mind, but I quickly chased away the question, deciding it would be safer to stay in the dark on that matter for now.


	4. Chapter 4

_"Tada!"_ I can barely withhold my excitement as I'm finally able to sit up with ease. I'm finally the ripe old age of two months! Though by body is still hard to maneuver, I've been able to roll over as much as I want, and I just mastered by ability to sit up without any support. While my previous adult mind would probably have cried hearing my genuine glee in being able to just sit up without being held, my experience as a baby is enough to bash away that voice without any hesitation.

"Rika's done it, she did!" The familiar voice of the resident maid of natural disasters snaps me away from my gloating, her gag glasses and wide smiling more than enough to make me laugh at her silly face. A blush decorates her cheeks as she watches me giggle, her usual squeal hurting my ears. Bart and Finny join in as I wave my little hands at them as a hello, their faces morphing into the spitting image of Mey-Rin's.

"All your hard work has finally paid off, little lady," Bart sniffles, proud tears in his eyes. I proudly nod, letting out a grunt of agreement to his words. It's nice to hear words of acknowledgement for my hard work from an adult. They probably don't truly understand, but this was hard work. I had to practice long after they fell asleep since I was busy watching their comedy acts during the day.

"Ah yes, I'd like to see your hard work paying off as well," a cold, smooth voice chimes in. Sebastian is standing in the doorway, his perfect smile plastered on his face as usual. However, none of the servants missed the small twitch of the corner of his lips and the dark aura spilling from his body. As usual, another guest will be appearing today and it seems that the servants are slacking off by sneaking into my playroom. "Mey-rin, have you cleaned the drawing room and set the dinning room for tomorrow night? Bard, are the preparations for dinner ready? What about the orders for the ingredients needed for tomorrow's dinner? Finny, have you finished clipping the trees and bushes in the front?" As usual, his list of work makes the servants cower, their shifty eyes averting his gaze telling the entire story. Tanaka merely laughs from the corner, watching with his unreadable disposition.

"Well, you see," Bart stutters, working up his courage to finally meet Sebastian's icy eyes. "We just wanted to take a break and check up on Rika. It seems that you rarely spend time to just be with her and we thought she might be lonely." It seems Bart's wholehearted confession is enough to stun Sebastian for once, his eyes widening for a split moment before closing to hide the anger in his amber orbs.

"I see. Well, I'm sure Rika understands that the reason I cannot spend as much time with her as she may like is because of the extra work I always seem to have." Sebastian's answer is more than enough to get the servants rushing out of the room, a Tanaka towed in Finny's hands and an apology echoing through the halls. A weary sigh tumbles from Sebastian's lips as he rubs his temples. I've noticed that the dark butler seems to relax much more around me since I'm a baby and it's pretty entertaining. Noticing my gaze, Sebastian makes his way to my crib, lifting my up into his hands. I stare at him silently, watching his amber eyes examine me thoughtfully.

 _"What is it? I don't remember getting a loan from you so ease up with the staring."_ It's sad to say that even though I can sit up, I still can't say a single coherent word. My baby babbling is depressing to hear.

"Those three may be might for once," Sebastian finally speaks, his expression scrunching up with mortification. "It seems I may have neglected spending time with you due to your unusually mature nature. You're already able to sit up with ease, though most children cannot do so until the age of four months."

I wonder if I should be hiding my intelligence a bit more? I don't really want to stand out, but it's a bit late for that when I never cry and freaking white hair. Whatever, this is the time to be a forgiving daughter so he continues to give me space to work on developing his fragile body. With a grunt, I squish my cheek into the butler's chest, rubbing it up and down like a cat while giggling happily. I can feel my pride taking critical hits with each rub and giggle but I endure it. I want to practice standing up and talking next, but it's too embarrassing to do that with this damn butler around.

" _I like the amount of alone time I have so please don't take that away from me."_ Sebastian gazes at me for a bit, hesitantly placing a free hand atop my head and ruffling my tuff of white. Completely engaged in "endearing baby mode", I grab his hand, pulling down and snuggle my cheek into his palms while giving him my most innocent smile. A small chuckle tumbles from his mouth, escalating into a deep rumble.

"Oh my, my own daughter is trying seduce me into spending more time with her." he muses aloud, softly stroking my cheek with his finger. I freeze at his words, wanting to venomously shaking my head. No! That's not what I was trying to do! Don't do this to me! Sebastian, for once way off mark, continues to stroke my cheek. "I believe I should be able to get permission from the young master to go out and buy you some new clothes. So far we've been improvising with some clothes Ms. Elizabeth gave us but a lady should have her own clothes. We should also find you a toy that you might actually like," Sebastian trails off, seemingly making a mental list of what we've yet to buy for me.

A shudder runs through my body as he mentions Elizabeth. I had met her a few days ago, her loud voice disturbing one of my rare naps. Barging in full force, she tackled Ciel to the ground and threw the entire manner into a frenzied panic. When she finally calmed down, she noticed me and had no concept of gently holding me. While she may have thought she was holding me gently, a baby's body is extremely fragile and I now have bruises on my stomach as proof of our meeting. Noticing my lack of clothing, she ended up having her servants deliver me her hand-me-downs, better than the clothes we haphazardly threw together from random cloth. While I became lost in my memories, Sebastian put back down in my crib, placing a random stuffed animal in with me. I silently watch him leave, his fake smile again gluing itself back onto his face. Once again, I'm left alone with my thoughts. Taking up my chance, I star to voice my thoughts aloud, deciding to practice my speech.

 _"Okay, let's go over the rundown of this situation. Before this, I was a normal university student and now, it seems like I was reborn into this infant's body. Hopefully, I'm not dead in my other body. Anyway, it seems that I, for some reason, have white hair and yellow eyes which is annoyingly going to make me stand out more than I'd like. The woman who gave birth to me hated me and her husband was a slave trafficker. Sebastian and Ciel work for the Queen and took out my parents under her orders. They also took me in out of curiosity and hoping to find out why I have such weird coloration. Sebastian is ... definitely not human. His inhuman speed and perfect composure, along with those glowing magenta eyes are enough proof of that. Ciel is ... probably human? He does show off any amazing physical skills, but his mature attitude for a little boy is pretty unnerving. I knew someone like that. Who was it?"_

Pain throbbed at my head, pounding mercilessly as I try to sort out my thoughts. Who? Who was I trying to remember. The pain only intensifies as i try to remember. With a sigh of defeat, I give up on my mental journey and shut my eyes in hopes to ease the pain. Slowly, sleep's tendrils ensnare my mind, dragging me into it's embrace.

* * *

"Razenshia. Razenshia." A young boy is towering over me, his jade eyes gazing blankly at me. I'm on the floor, body splayed out on cracked tiles, blood pooling around me.I limbs are chained by shackles, connecting to the statue of the Virgin Mary. With each small movement, the sound of chains clinging against one another drums in my ears. I helplessly look past the boy, captivated by the beautiful stained glass window, vivid colors painting the deserted building. Where am I? Why does it feel like my back is burning off? Stop it. Stop it. Save me. Help me. It hurts!

* * *

A gasp constricts my throat, the blank ceiling of my playroom greeting me from my nap. Tears have welled up in my eyes, though the pain had faded, and the clawing of crows announce the sunset's arrival. Orange dyes my room, the calming covers aiding me in calming down. Again, a strange dream that warps my memories. I had seen that place before. My parents had visited it frequently to pray and I was always dragged along. I never sat down to pray with them, but rather I admired the beautiful glass windows, colors fluctuating with the sunlight. I was never chained up though. I don't remember ever meeting that boy. Yet, he's somehow familiar.

Shaking away my ominous thoughts, I shakily heave a sigh. What a day, Taking in my surroundings, I notice my playroom is dyed in orange. The sun is already setting and the sound of the three stooges screaming has faded. I suppose that means Sebastian should be coming sooner or later to take me shopping.

Right on cue, the door swung open to reveal the smiling butler, his pocket watch in hand. "Ah, it seems you've awaken from your nap, Rika." With long strides, he makes his way over to me, effortlessly taking me into his arms. He swiftly adjusts me to sit on his left forearm before examining me. "Is something wrong little one? You don't seem as calm as you usually do." A frown replaces his polite smile, his brows furrowing with worry.

I flinch at his observation, scolding myself for my distracted carelessness. For the second time today, Sebastian surprises me by soothingly rubbing my back, patting it form time to time. Despite myself, I lean into his touch, hugging him upper arm and bury my face into his coat. I hate relying on you, especially when I don't even know what you are, but I suppose I've already come to recognize you as my father so there's no going back now. Gathering myself, I finally muster my blush of embarrassment away and the large giggle I've yet to sound. Removing my face from his arm, I clap my hands happily, grinning and blowing little spit bubbles to relieve the poor butler of baby comforting duty. He looks at me blankly for a moment, not reacting to my smiles, but soon gives me one of his own.

"It seems you've managed to calm yourself. Then I suppose we'll take the young master up on his offer for us to spend the evening buying you necessitates." I nod strongly, happy to be able to get some normal clothes. Elizabeth's clothes were nice, the fabric obviously high quality, but too extravagant. Frills everywhere and bonnets are not exactly comfortable. Chuckling at my strong response, Sebastian brings out a small jacket, pink with flowers all over it, and helps my tiny hands through the sleeves. The frills uncomfortably tickle the back of my neck, and I can feel myself pouting at the girly design. Still, I sit obediently on Sebastian's forearm and allow him to carry me to the front door without trouble.

"Ah, Mr. Sebastian! Are you taking Rika out shopping?" Finny totters up to us as we exit the house, a watering can in his hand.

"Yes, I need to buy her some clothes, food and other necessitates. Please be sure to not create another mess while I'm out," Sebastian replied sharply. The little gardener, tenses up, saluting in return while dashing off. I laugh a bit at his comedic fear of the dark butler, earning a curious glance from the said man. Feigning ignorance with the babbling of a baby, Sebastian sighed and clicked open his pocket watch once again. "Ah, we won't be able to make it time if we call for a carriage now," he sighs, returning his watch into his pocket. "Please hold onto me tightly, little one." I insensitively follow his command, his own hold on me tightening on me. One moment, we're standing on the front porch of the Phantomhive manner, the next, everything around me blurred into streaks of grey and green. Wind lashes out at my head, my face only protected by being snuggled into Sebastian's arm, his free hand holding my head in place. By the time I realize Sebastian was _running_ , we had already stopped in the middle of a town square, a fountain shooting out water. As calmly as ever, Sebastian starts to take casual strides with me in hand, walking as if he had been there for hours.

 _"I don't understand how any of those servants think that your human when you can do things like this. How are you not sweating?! A monster. My father is a monster."_ My rambling is cut off as I notice people staring at me. Women hide their frowns behind fans, but their obvious scornful glares follow me. A pair of men are whispering to one another, both of them continuing to shift their gazes from one another to me. A child bluntly points at me, eyes wide and an innocent smile on his face.

"Mommy! Look at that weird baby! It has white hair and yellow eyes!" His mother quickly hushes him, pulling him away towards a carriage. Ah, I totally forgot about my hair and eyes for a second there. Man, I can already tell it's going to be such a pain meeting new people with these features. If they react like this now, they're not going to hold back as I grow older.

"Ah, we're here." Sebastian comes to a stop before a little store, mannequins wearing children's clothes posing in the display window. A little bell rings as the opens, altering the shop keeper of our entrance. An elderly woman sits behind the counter, a cup of tea in her hands. She looks over, beaming happily as she places her drink down.

"Hello! What a handsome father! Are you looking for some baby clothes for your daughter?" she asks, reminding me of a overly excited grandma. Sebastian nods, walking deeper into the store to unblock the door. I wonder if she can see my hair? Maybe her old age has taken away her common sense. Who knows.

"Yes, I was looking for some high quality, comfortable clothes for this little one." The grandma laughs at his reply, rounding the counter so moving her face close to examine me.

"Such a beautiful darling. She's a calm one," the old lady coos, turning away and waving her hand to signal Sebastian to follow her. He does, trailing her to the very back of the store. She pulls out some clothes, most simple white dresses. Sebastian carefully examines each dress, commenting on the style and fabric before selecting a few here and there. I'm thankful that most of the clothes Sebastian picks out are fairly simple, some decorated with lace but none with too many frills. He also picks out a few colorful ones here and there, claiming we may need them in case we have visitors. With enough outfits in tow, the old lady brings out a bunch of bonnets. I immediately whine, shaking my head vigorously.

"It seems like the little miss doesn't like bonnets," the old lady chuckles, clearly amused by my rejection. She disappears for a few moments before bringing out a handful of hats. Some were lined with fur, others decorated with gems, a few adorned with flowers. Sebastian picked them up one by one, appraising them carefully before picking out a little fur cap, claiming I need something for the winter, and a cadet cap. The old lady slowly placed everything in a bag for us, charging us the appreciate amount before waving goodbye to us.

The next stores we visited weren't so nice, the store clerks smiling prettily at Sebastian while casting a weary glance at me. I can now see why Ciel wanted me to ward off females from his butler. A cold night breeze was sweeping across the twon by the time we finished buying supplies for me, the crowd of nobles slowly dwindling as night fell. I gaze at the kiosks, one selling flowers, mos selling food. One, however, caught my attention. A young shop keeper, a boy of maybe sixteen, stood there silently smiling at everyone around him. A stuffed animal sits on his shoulder, the stand beside him carrying a stuffed animal for every creature imaginable. Hidden behind a lion, a stuffed cat sat obscurely. It's body is black the ends of it's paws dyed white, and blue buttons sewn in for eyes. It's left ear is missing, a little stub sewn together with visible, but neat stitches lining it. The stitches trail along the sides of the cat, a gash of stitches also seen on it's little stomach. While it may seem like a ragged stuffed animal haphazardly sewn back together, the neat stitches and even stub of the ear points towards the morbid design to me deliberate. I guess my bad tastes for these type of things followed me from my last life. Most kids would probably want a Phantomhive doll over these guys, but I really like that cat.

As I wistfully look longingly at the stuffed animal, Sebastian seems to notice my staring. "Rika, are you interested in those stuffed animals?" He stares at me curiously, a familiar amused smile gracing his lips. It's his smile he has when he messes around with Ciel. A chill pricked at my back as we approached the stand. Closer, I can now see the features of the boy pretty well. His golden curls, along with his porcelain skin, makes him look like a doll, innocent yet unnerving. His eyes a bright blue, the opposite of Ciel's, but somehow as cold as the young master's.

"Hello, Sir! Are you looking for a stuffed animal for your little daughter?" he grins, petting the stuffed dog on his shoulder.

"Yes, it seems my daughter's interested in them," Sebastian replies pleasantly, leaning towards the toys for me to see better. Wasting no time with the other animals, I grabbed the hidden stuffed cat and hugged it. The soft cotton inside molds nicely against my stomach, but I could feel something inside of it.

"You have good tastes, Rika. A cat is the cutest type of animal. Their little curious faces and unreadable, fickle nature are all endearing parts of them." Sebastian's eyes grew a dazed, look as he lists out his reasons for loving cats. I can't stop my laughter at his unexpected reaction to the toy. I was similarly always a cat person over a dog person but I never had such a dreamy reaction.

"Ah, it seems she's picked out Mr. Locke. He's a very special cat, unlike most stuffed animals, there are special inside him." Carefully taking the cat from my hands, the boy gently pulls back the sides of the stitches on it's stomach to reveal a hidden zipper. Pulling it down, he reveals a thin layer of cotton and behind it, I see a red flowers. He pulls one out, allowing me to see that they're camellias, scentless flowers that I had liked as a child. "These are persevered by being soaked in preservative chemicals and pickled in champagne for years to add a nice scent." The boy puts back the flower and stuffing back into place as he talks, zipping up it's stomach before handing it back to me. "Would you like to buy it?" Sebastian glances at me, watching me hug the stuffed cat for a moment before giving me a resigned sigh.

"Yes, we'll take this one," he agrees, pulling out his wallet. I silently watch their exchange while holding onto the stuffed toy, waiting for us to walk a few steps away before pulling at his sleeve. Sebastian paused his walking, glancing at me curiously.

 _"Bend down a bit will ya! It's hard being a baby!"_ I grunt out as I pull at his collar to forcefully bring his neck down. Following with my whims, Sebastian brings his face down closer to mine. Giggling happily with satisfaction, I bring Mr. Locke up to his face, touching their noses together. Pulling the toy away from his face, I then plant a wet his on his cheek. More used to my kisses of affection, Sebastian smiled at my actions.

"Your welcome. I hope you continue to see the cutest of cats, little one."


	5. Chapter 5

"Come on, Rika! Try saying 'Finny'!" I stare at the grinning gardener blankly, loosely hugging Mr. Locke. It's been four months since Ciel and Sebastian brought me to this manor, and I'm proud to say I've been able to mature quite a bit. While I can't stand on my own just yet, I can hold myself up if I'm placed on my feet and given something to hold. If there isn't anything to hold onto, I can still squat and hold that position for a few minutes before falling to my butt. With that, the three stooges have recently been trying to get me to say my first word, which they each hope to be their own names.

"You idiot, that's too hard for a first word!" Bard barks, brushing Finny aside to stand in front of me. "Alright little miss, 'ow 'bout you try saying 'Ba-Ba'!" Silence filled the room as we all stared at the grinning cook. I never quite realized how stupid adults act around children until now.

"No! She should say 'Mey-Mey' as her first word, she should!" the clumsy maid intervenes, knocking her forehead against Bard's with fire raging in her eyes. Bard pushes back with the same intensity, grinding his teeth and clecnching his fists.

"Um, maybe she would actually be saying 'Papa' to Mr. Sebastian first," Finny meekly interjects, earning the harsh glare of the other two servants. Poor Finny let out a pitiful squeak, running behind my crib and squatting to hide behind my little body. I let out a hidden sigh into Mr. Locke's head as I snuggle my face into his soft form. Look at them, Mr. Locke. Bickering like children. I bet Sebastian's going to appear in t-minus three, two, one.

Right on cue, the accomplished butler throws the doors open, his narrowed eyes glued to his pocket watch. "You three. Madam Red and Mr. Lau will be arriving soon. Have you three completed the tasks I assigned this morning?" The three trembled under his scrutinizing gaze.

"W-well, I did finish water the hedges, but I haven't really started fertilizing any of the flower beds," Finny replies, his voice getting softer with every word.

"I finished dusting the library, I did! B-but I haven't gotten to moping the dining hall or the lobby," Mey-Rin follows up, her voice similarly trailing off as she admits her crime.

"Hmph, lazy blokes aren't you two," Bard grins, proudly straightening his back. "I finished cleaning out the fridge and preparing the ingredients needed for dinner." I raise a dubious eyebrow, surprised to see that he, of all the stooges, would be the one to complete his tasks. It seems that the other two had similar thoughts because they stared at him with gaping mouths and wide eyes.

"And have you made an inventory of what we have and put in the orders for tomorrow's meals?" Sebastian asks, immediately wiping Bard's cocky grin off his face.

"I 'ad to do that, too?" he asks dumbly, averting his gaze from his two glaring comrades.

"Yes, Bard, you do. Now," Sebastian smiles, taking in a small breath. "Get. To. Work." Feeling his anger, the three rush out the room, stumbling on top of one another to get away from Sebastian's fury. With them out, the dark butler let out a weary sigh. "You have a job today as well, Rika," Sebastian sighs, taking me into his arms. Wait, what about child labor laws? Then again, I doubt they're all that good if Ciel is a head of a entire company. "Today, two important guests will be coming to meet you. It seems Lady Elizabeth has spread word of your existence to some of our closer business partners and their curiosity has gotten the better of them."

Ah, why am I not surprised Elizabeth is the center of this mess. Well how bad could giggling at some people be? I giggle cheerfully and clap my hands to show Sebastian my cooperative spirit, a grateful smile replacing his slight frown. Patting my hair with his gloved hands, Sebastian brings me over to my little closet, quickly selecting one of my nicer dresses and swiftly dresses me up. He runs a comb through my growing locks of white before securing a lace hairband on my head. He finishes with putting some small shoes on my feet, a bit stiff for my comfort but nothing too bad. I allow Sebastian to place Mr. Locke back into my crib, waving a little goodbye to my companion. Just as he finishes, the doorbell rings through the manor, signalling the arrival of the guests. With a sparse glance at his pocket watch and a annoyed click of his tongue, Sebastian takes his long strides to the door. Steeling my will to act out my part as a happy baby, I grip onto Mr. Locke. Before I knew it, I naturally carried the stuffed toy everywhere I went, earning squeals from the servants and a roll of the eye from Ciel. It's scary how easily I started to depend on stuffed animals again, despite having graduated from such things long ago.

As we get to the stairs leading to the front door, I notice the three servants rushing to hide cleaning supplies, burning pots and bags of leaves. Sebastian merely sighs at their antics, freezing them still with a single glare. Opening up a side window, he picks up all three of the servants and throws them outside along with the trash, closed the window and proceeded to the door. I glance over Sebastian's back to see the three servants peaking over the ledge, peering into the manor with fear. I don't try to stop myself from giggling at their reaction, immediately cheering them up as they continue to try to make silly faces at me. My attention is ripped away from them as I hear the door opening and cling onto Sebastian's neck as he bows.

"Good evening Madam Red, Mr. Lau." I stare at the two guests smiling at the young butler. A woman, completely clad in red like her name suggests smiles at me with gleeful eyes. Her extravagant dress sways as she steps into the manor, the fan in her hands covering her mouth. Following her in is a man, very obviously not form this country. Based on his clothing, I assume he's Chinese. His eyes are completely shut, but he's easily able to navigate his way into the manor without bumping into anything. He has a unreadable smile plastered on his face, similar to Sebastian's in many ways. Clinging to his side is a girl, almost exactly like the man but her hazel eyes are clearly visible.

"Is this the daughter I've heard so much about? Rika, was it? It seems Lady Elizabeth was right when she told me about this child's unusual features," Madam Red gasps, bringing her face extremely close to mine. I fight the urge to slap her, pretending it's part of my baby attitude, but I hold myself back. Instead, I giggle at her widening my eyes in fake awe as I gently point at her hair. To make my point, I lean back into Sebastian's arms to make some room for my to clap happily, pausing to point at her hair once again. She looked at me with a shocked face, a blinding smile quickly taking over her surprise. "Oh my! I think she likes my red hair! She's such a darling," Madam Red coos, stroking my cheek with a cold finger. My hand jolts up to push her cold digit away from my face, but I quickly chance my motive to grasping her finger in my little hands and blowing little spit bubbles as I giggle and shake her finger hello. She lets out another squeal at my actions, a blush adorning her cheeks. "Oh, she's almost as adorable as my nephew!"

Without warning, I feel another pair of hands pluck me out of Sebastian's hold, my vision suddenly filled by the smiling face of Mr. Lau. I stare at him blankly for a moment, surprised, but not exactly scared. I wonder if it's because he gives of the same passive aura as Sebastian. Either way, I welcome the freedom from the bold woman's chilling touch. Showing my appreciation, I break down with a fit of laughter while kicking my little legs up and down.

"Hey! You can't just swipe a child from their parent's hands without permission!" Madam Red barks, glowering at the Chinese man. I merely laughs, shifting his hold on me so that I'm cradled in one hand.

"Ah, I would never 'swipe' a child from anyone! I merely wanted to hold the daughter of the young master's esteemed butler!" Lau defended, his words lacking any remorse and face still smiling without a care.

"You still can't just take a child without their parent's consent!" she huffs, storming towards Lau with anger tinting her face red. The girl by Lau's side starts to move, but is stopped by Lau's next reply.

"Were you not just touching this child without her 'parent's consent'?" he retorts, momentarily stopping the red haired noble from advancing. I roll my eyes at the scene, raising a questioning brow at the unmoving butler. It seems he was expecting this. Ignoring their back and forth, I look up a Lau. A strangely sweet fragrance clings to him, something I'm sure I've smelled before. I lean on closer, sniffing his chest, determined to remember this scent. An annoyed pout crosses my face as the man suddenly starts to shake. I turn my annoyed face up to see Lau looking at me with an amused smile, obviously stifling a laugh. Confusion crosses my mind for a second before I realize he's laughing at me, noticing my strange actions. A blush of embarrassment sweeps across my cheeks, and I decide to do the only thing I can do as a baby. Hide my face in his chest. Turns out, this only makes things worse and Lau starts to openly laugh at my actions, earning a confused look from Madam Red. It seems she hadn't noticed what I was doing, but the intrigued gaze from the dark butler tells me he definitely did. How embarrassing.

"I'm terribly sorry to disturb you three, but would you like to continue this in the drawing room? The young master is already there and we've prepared some tea and snacks." Butler to the rescue! Oh thank God, I'm saved! Let's go! Lau finally hands me back to Sebastian, who I promptly give a wet kiss to. Ignoring Madam Red's sweet coos and Lau's mocking smile, I snuggle my face into Sebastian's familiar chest. I wonder when I got used to his specific warmth and his careful hold. It calms me greatly, but also annoys me. Letting out a small snort, his covered hand covering his mouth, he gently pats my head for a brief moment before turning around to lead the three guests to the drawing room, where Ciel was waiting. I rarely see the young master, despite being in his manor for months. From time to time, he'll have Sebastian bring me into his study and report of my growth over the weeks before shooing me away without much of a second glance. I've done my best to earn his affections, smiling and clapping at him cheerfully, but he just ignores me with a scornful glare. However, maybe I'll be able to make some progress today since there'll be more people with us.

With that said, Ciel had his usual angry glare plastered on his face when we do enter, his fingers pounding against the armrest of the recliner he was sitting in impatiently. "What took you four so long!" he grunts, focusing his gaze onto Sebastian.

"Don't you mean 'five', Young Master?" Lau interjects, smiling his unreadable smile a tiny bit wider. "Rika is also with us, after all," he reminds, motioning at me with a flopped hand. Ciel only clicks his tongue in return, moodily resting his chin on a fist.

"I'm sorry, my darlnig nephew," Madam Red grins, running up to the blue eyed boy. She takes him into her arms, ignoring his struggling and orders to stop. "It feels like I haven't seen you in years!"

"We've been busy with some business and adjusting to having a baby in the manor," Ciel explains, finally escaping from his aunt's grip. "Sebastian, go bring us some tea and snacks," orders the young master, returning to his seat.

"Of course," Sebastian replies, bowing lowly with his free hand on his chest.

"Why not leave little Rika with us!" Lau grins, stopping the butler from exiting. "Who do you want to hold you, little Rika?" A taunting tone drips from every word, causing annoyance to rise in my chest. I suppose he thinks that I like him better than Madam Red, which isn't wrong, but I don't want to play into his hands of he's going to have that kind of attitude. That leaves me with Madam Red, the Chinese girl next to Lau, or ... Yep, let's go with that.

Instead of pointing at our two guests, I launch a bright smile and spread my two arms out towards the sulking young master. Sebastian trembles slightly as he holds back a chuckle while I openly giggle at the wide eye face of our young master. It seems Madam Red is surprised by my choice and Ciel's reaction as well as her jaw slightly falls open at our interaction. Lau, on the other hand, watches with another amused smile, obviously taking pleasure in this situation. Darn.

"Hold on-," Ciel starts, obviously about to object to my choice.

"My my, the great Phantomhive Earl isn't possibly about to say he can't even hold a single infant for a few minutes, is he?" Lau mocks, interrupting CIel's protest.

"Of course, I can!" the young lord snarls, taking the bait. Ah, there's some of the childishness that a kid his age should have. I can already see Sebastian's twinkling, mischievous eyes without looking. Fueled by Lau's taunts, Ciel opens up his arms, beckoning Sebastian to hand me over. Following his master's commands, the capable butler carefully released me into Ciel's hold, maneuvering his hands so that he held me comfortably. I could already feel the awkward boy tensing up as he held me, his frown deepening. Sebastian bowed once more before disappearing from the room. Knowing him, he'll probably prolong his return to tease the young master a bit longer. Still, this is a good chance to try to play with Ciel up close.

I let out a small string of giggles as I look up at Ciel's face, cooing intangible words at him. I can see his discomfort deepen through his tightening grip, but he stubbornly keeps his poker face on. An idea popped into my head, to which I immidately put into action. Bringing my face closer to his, with great difficulty due to refusal to move his hands, I place my lips again Ciel's eye patch and audibly give it a wet kiss. Ciel immediately rips me away from his face, holding me as far away from his body as he possibly can without dropping me. A burning shade of red engulfs his cheeks as he stutters to try to react to my action. I can't hold back my giggle as steam basically rises from his head. Madam Red immediately starts to squeal, eagerly encouraging Ciel to return the favor while Lau trembles to hold back his laughter. Just before Ciel bursts out in embarrassed anger, the door swings open to reveal our butler's smiling face with a cart in hand. He definitely knew what just happened.

"Excuse me, I've returned with some earl grey tea and black forest cake," the butler announces, pushing the cart with the said food in.

"Hurry up and take this thing away from me," Ciel barks, his red face sporting a childish sulk. I see, I see. The only time he acts more like his age is when he's angry and can't keep calm. I'll keep this in mind! Sebastian obeys, expertly seating my on his hip with the support of one hand. I can hear CIel let out a little grunt as Sebastian pours tea for everyone, passing it out without any spills despite having me in one arm.

"Your daughter is truly adorable!" Madam Red grins, gracefully sipping her tea. "It seems she's rather calm around strangers and can tolerate Ciel's rough handling as well." Ciel glares at his aunt for her last comment, wolfing down his cake with elegant bites.

"Yes, she seems to be able to surprise all of us," Lau grins, swirling his tea cup with his wrist. "She's just like her father."

Their meeting flew by quickly after that, the topic switching to some investigation they were asked to look into by the queen. It was sunset by the time they left, and Ciel had us relocate to his study where he scarfed down another slice of cake.

"How's her development coming along? Has she spoken her first word yet?" Ciel asks, lazily propping his foot up onto his chair and leaning back as he finished his cake.

"Well, it seems the servants were trying to get her to say their names as her first words this morning," Sebastian informs, glancing down at me. To be honest, I've been practicing saying my first word for a while during the nights. It's too embarrassing practicing in front of others when I used to be able to used to be able to form complicated sentences. I was able to say my first word a few nights ago, but I've kept it a secret, though, this might be the perfect timing to showcase my practice.

I let out a grunt as I tug on Sebastian's sleeve, earning the attention of both, the butler and young master. They watch me curiously, as I open my mouth and say, "Meow."


	6. Chapter 6

Silence filled the study, and I found myself torn between wanting to see Sebastian or Ciel's reaction the most. Luckily, there was no need. The door suddenly burst open, the three stooges, and Tanaka in the background, came bursting in. Blood dripped from Mey-Rin's nose, but that was all ignored as they screamed with excitement.

"She said 'Meow', she did!" Mey-Rin cries, a red blush rivaling the nosebleed gushing our even more vigorously.

"Our Rika said her first word!" Finny joins in, luckily not adding to the puddle of red on the nice wood floor.

"This calls for a party!" Bart agrees, clenching his fist with determination. Even after living with them for months, I can't help but to be surprised by their actions. Were they just eavesdropping the whole time? Wait! I didn't get to see Sebastian or Ciel's faces! Hurriedly, I turn to look at the butler, knowing the young master would probably take longer to recover than this damn-near-perfect butler. I froze in shock as I saw his face. A warmth I've never seen in his eyes tenderly looked at me, a faint pink dusting across his cheeks. His smile seems a tiny bit more vulnerable than usual and I can almost see roses floating behind him.

"Ah, you truly are my daughter," he sighs happily, adoringly stroking my cheek with a gloved hand. I tense up at his kind treatment, something I'm definitely not used to. While he's always taken good care of me, gently giving me the attention needed, his actions were never fueled by fondness. How do I react? I hope you never do this to other women, or they may just paint the city red with their nosebleeds. On that note, it seems the servants have similarly noticed Sebastian's expression because they openly gape at their superior with blushing faces. Even Bart and Finny can't escape his handsome face showing such a endearing expression!

Ciel is the first one to snap out of his initial shock, a feat I find award worthy. "You," the lowly growls, his voice going completely ignored by the blissful butler, "damn cat freaks!" His voice rings throughout the mansion, snapping the servants out of their own awe. I'm the one being attacked by this butler's beautiful face, I can't escape so easily like them! However, I do notice a very slight tint of pink mounted on the young master's face. Ah, I wish I could tease him!

"Man, who knew she would turn out so much like her old man, though," Bart grins, nodding his head in fake solace. "Her fast development probably 'as something to do with how Sebastian is so capable." I regret to say that I'm not blood related to this man, nor would I want to be. I'd like to live a fairly normal life and this man is not human. Non-humans probably have a much more troublesome life a human so I'll pass.

"Yeah, that makes sense!" the other two agree in unison, nodding as if his answer solves the entire mystery. Sigh, I wish Ciel would take some of your childishness. Just a bit and he would be much more like a kid his age.

"You three!" Ciel barks, ignoring their accomplished faces. "How many times have I told you not to eavesdrop!" The young master's scolding jolts the three servants into realizing their current situation, apologies naturally flowing from their mouths like usual. "And you!" Ciel huffs, pointing at Sebastian. "What have you teaching her? A child's first words should be 'papa' or 'mama'! Not 'meow' for God's sake!"

"B-but, don't you think that we should celebrate her saying her first word so soon?" Finny interjects, obviously trying to deescalate Ciel's anger.

"Yes, such a moment should be enjoyed, Young Master!" Mey-Rin joins, nodding her head strongly with conviction. "Isn't that right, Mr. Sebastian?" It seems the three stooges don't expect much from Sebastian, but decide to involve him anyway, knowing only he could persuade the young master of participating in a celebration.

"Yes, I do believe this is a cause for a small party," Sebastian agrees, shocking everyone once again. I never realized how much power cats had over this man. I'll be sure to make use of this for emergencies, it might just be the most important weapon I have for my own survival.

"Why should we do such a useless thing?" Ciel retorts, furrowing his brows and crossing his arms. The servants send their (terrible) puppy eyes towards Sebastian, silently pleasing for his help.

"Well, we must celebrate such a wondrous occasion! Little Rika has proven that she understands the beauty of felines!" Sebastian sighs, again summoning roses of happiness to aid him. Ciel opens his mouth, his frown indicating he's ready to object to the idea, but Sebastian's faster. "I understand that these type of celebrations involve a variety of sweets so I will also be making some new creations if this were approved." He's baiting Ciel! I watch Ciel's expression carefully, his inner turmoil very blatantly showing on his face.

"Fine, but you better make sure she doesn't try to get a pet cat in the future," Ciel huffed, sinking deeper into his chair as he takes up his defeat. I can't help but to laugh a bit at the young earl. Another mental memo to note: The Phantomhive head is weak in the face of sweets and dislikes cats. In these moments, I can understand his nickname as a guard dog, though maybe not in the context as what most perceive it as. Feisty, arrogant, childish and gluttonous all come together to paint the picture of a spoiled, little dog, matching our little earl more than I thought.

* * *

What a pain. I stared blankly at the snarling faces of men, my tiny butt aching from being forced to sit on a pool table with my limbs tied up. It had been less than an hour since I was given to the three stooges so that Sebastian could tend to getting the deserts ready for my "first word" party, and I was already plucked out from their care. I have to admit, the reason for their neglect may be dumber than the reason I had been kidnapped the first time - that being our naive gardener leaving me to sit outside alone while he went to grab some gardening tools. This time, the three servants were arguing about who would get to hold me and set me down on a chair next to an open window. During their heated bickering, they didn't even notice when a shady man slipped through the window and grabbed me from my seat. I would have let out a scream, but the man immediately shoved a dirty cloth in my mouth to stop me from making any noise. I wonder if I should be grateful there wasn't some drug to knock me out soaked in that cloth.

"So this is the new Phantomhive brat?" one of the men drawls, a lit cigar hanging from his mouth. His face is somehow familiar, though I can't put my finger on it. He rears his bald head near me as he examines my features. "And your sure this is the monster butler's weakness?" Oh, looks like they caught wind of Sebastian's capabilities. A less intimating man nods quickly, obvious anxiety coating his face.

"Y-yes, we've had our men spying for days to ensure she's the girl." Gross, you guys were watching for days? How did no one notice? You guys don't exactly look like normal civilians that might pass by with all those scars and tattoos.

"Hmph. Those mutts got some the guys from my brother's gang. Lucky for us, I had left a wiretapping device in their hide out to make sure my brother wasn't hiding any good dealings from us but instead, I hear them screaming about some damn butler before we find his dead body. We can't just let them off when they did that to my own flesh and blood." Oh! You're the brother of my first kidnapper! Wow, I wish I had some popcorn to munch on while listening to your mundane villain monologue! Oh, but I don't have all my teeth in yet. A bottle of milk will do too.

I sigh at the man's pitiful reasoning, wondering if anyone's going to point out he's contradicting his reason when he admits that he has to wiretap his brother's hideout because he doesn't trust his brother, yet now wants revenge? Well, I can already tell no one's going to say anything to anger this dude, such by seeing their nervous faces agreeing without a second thought. What a bunch of losers.

"There's no need to call him to our hideout like my dumbass brother did. We just need to send them a package of her parts after we're done with her instead." I freeze at his words. Wait, what? A wave of fear I hadn't felt during my last kidnapping suddenly washes over me. Why am I so scared? He's not that much worse than his brother. They haven't started beating me up or anything so why can't I stop trembling?

That's when I heard it: the sound of a belt being unbuckled. I watch in horror as the bald man gives me a lustful grin, sex-crazed eyes gluing onto me. I can see the disgusted and pitying eyes of the men behind him, a few with perverted grins. I feel my vocal cords seize up and I immediately start kicking, doing anything I can to make up for my frozen voice. This can't be happening to me. No matter what, isn't doing this to a baby a bit much? No matter how many people you kill, this can't be happening. Tears fall from my eyes, genuine fear enveloping my body. I wonder why I'm crying now? I didn't cry when I was smashed into a splinter wonderland as a month old baby. I'm already four months old so I shouldn't be crying yet, right? No, I know why. I knew Sebastian would come and save me last time. They called him and I knew he wouldn't abandon me. Not because he loved me or cared for me. No, that man does not truly see me as his daughter just yet. Rather, because he was ordered to care for me as if I were his daughter by his master. But now, he might not even know I've been taken. I won't be saved.

My thrashing increases as I see the man's zipper slide down. Nausea mounts my throat, and I can barely gasp for air as sobs block my airway. No. Please. Someone save me. The lock on my voice finally breaks as he man takes his first step closer to me. "Papa!" I scream, unable to hold back my wails of fear. Time seems to slow down in that moment as the wall in front of me cracks loudly, suddenly bursting into tiny pieces. The Phantomhive butler is standing calmly in the rubble, magenta eyes glowing as they do every time he saves me. Not just when he saved me from the first kidnapping, but when he waved me from my biological parents. Just seeing him calms my sobs into a soft hiccup. Before i know it, I cry out again, "Papa." I want to hold out my arms, to beg him to hold me, but the ropes only big into my flesh harder as I struggle.

"How the fuck did you find us?!" the bald man screeches, pulling up his pants as soon as he recovered from his shock. He aims a long handgun at Sebastian, obvious shaken up by his sudden appearance.

"A butler who couldn't do this much simply isn't worth his salt," Sebastian pleasantly smiles, the gap between his face and the situation at hand unsettling the men into all pulling out various guns and weapons. "And how could I not come when my daughter bestows her second word to me?" I want to make fun of his cheesy words, I want to call him an idiot, but I'm just glad that he's here. I watch silently, doing my best to keep him letting out anymore silent sobs with little success. The men didn't hesitant to shoot their weapons at Sebastian, the ringing round of multiple guns ripping at my eardrums. Still, I make sure to keep watching the scene unfold. With swift ease, Sebastian picks up a curtain from the floor and pulls it up so that it covers his body just before the bullets get to him. "Now you see me-" We wait in silence as the curtain falls, revealing the butler to be missing from his spot. "Now you don't." His reverberates through the building, coming from every direction and making them men lose their coordination. The bald man jams the cold barrel to my temple, a familiar move that I see passes down from brother to brother. Before the bald man can even utter a single threat, a wave of trump cards came flying down from the ceiling, nailing all the panicking men in the neck. The building is suddenly full of blood sprinklers, all who remains is the quivering baldy with his gun to my head.

"S-stop! I'll blow this brat's brains out!" he screams, his shaking intensifying with his own words. Sebastian seems more amused then threatened, playfully frowning and tilting his head side to side.

"Now that won't do at all. We've yet to celebrate her first words yet, after all." I would nod my head to agree with his nonchalant words, but the cold gun at my head is enough reason for me to stay still. Finally fed up with the situation, the shaking man starts to pull the trigger, only to end up ripped away from my side. Sebastian had caught the man's face in one hand, easily ignoring the clawing, kicking and screaming from the large man. Instead, his grip tightened with each passing second, escalating the man's frantic movements before they suddenly came to a halt with a sickening series of cracks, blood staining Sebastian's white glove. The butler merely let go of the limp body, letting it fall to the floor with a disturbing thud. "Ah, it seems you've even ruined my gloves," he sighs, pulling them off and discarding them on the man's corpse.

I notice a pentagram intricately etched into the back of his hand, something I had yet to see due to his habit of always keeping his hands gloved. I expect him to cover it up with the replacement pair I know he keeps in his back pocket after multiple incidents where he's lost pairs on his hands due to the three stooges and their infallible clumsiness. Instead, he approaches me with his bare hands, carefully taking my cheeks into his large palms. Before I know it, my tears are again falling from my face as I suddenly realize how cold my body has gotten. His warm hands jolt me back to reality and help me regain my composure.

"I see you've finally recognized me as your father," Sebastian smiles, stroking my tears away with his fingers. Ah, maybe I have. Is that why I called from him? Who else could I call for? In this world, I have no one but you. But that's unbearably scary because I don't know if you think of me as your real daughter yet. No, I don't believe it. Not from someone who can kill others without any qualm or something that's not even human. I barely register Sebastian taking away a hand to undo my bondage until my body naturally moves to embrace my savior, snuggling my face into the crook of his neck. Ugh, I never want to experience anything like this again. "This is the first time I've seen you cry, little one." Sebastian's voice lost all it's amusement and playfulness, instead taking on an emotionless tone. I don't try to read his facial expression, instead just nodding into his shirt. We bask in the silence of the moment for a few more minutes before the dark butler finally starts to move towards the hole in the wall he had created. "Now, let us make our way back to the manor. I still need to prepare a few more deserts, punish those three and clean you up," the butler lists, continuing to mumble out other things he needs to do once we get back. His sudden change of topic to the lighter tone of the silliness of the Phantomhive manor is enough to bring a small smile back to face.

"Papa?" I interrupt his mumbling, bringing him back to reality. He looks at me, the pensive expression of his melting back into a confidante one. Sebastian smiles, rubbing my head one more time before sliding his extra pair of gloves back on, shifting me from one arm to the other to do so while securing them with his teeth.

"There's no need to worry, little one. After all, a Phantomhive butler who can't do this much, isn't worth his salt."


	7. Chapter 7

My good man, I've done it. I can know walk on my own, albeit at a snail's pace and filled with falling over time and time again, but I can walk nonetheless! I'll be a year old in a month, meaning all my nights of practicing in secret shaved off a month of being locked in that prison of a crib. I've also been able to expand my speech a bit more, thanks to already knowing exactly what I want to convey. I suspect that most children would be able to start speaking much sooner if they didn't have to go through the process of learning the language while practicing their undeveloped vocal words. These two skills, though still in need to great practice, has greatly expanded my word from my little playroom and bedroom, to this entire manor. I will say this now. Getting down stairs is hard. It feels like I'm chancing death every time I slowly lower by body from step to step, hanging as though I'm dangling from a cliff. I've attempted a couple of times, though I tend to be found by the time I get three steps down and just get carried down by one of the three stooges. A good example would be right now.

"Rika, are you trying to get downstairs again?" Bard asks, suddenly appearing at the bottom of the stairs. I don't answer right away, clinging to the step I had been on and slowly lowering myself to the next. I hate to admit that I'm already out of breath from two stairs. Bard trudges up these stairs with a amused smile, squatting down to better look at my panting form. Okay, stop that teasing smile!

"Barb!" I grin, throwing my two arms up at him. I internally cry at my inability to properly say his name, my baby tongue creating a natural lisp that I can't escape. The cook's smile widens at my silent request, having done this routine multiple times.

"What a lift, little lady?" he asks teasingly, taking me up into his arms. I've noticed that Bard surprisingly isn't too bad with his baby holding form, though a bit rough when he picks me up. Out of all the servants, I've come to enjoy his company the most. Mainly, due to his large arsenal of weapons, combined with his lack of common sense, means I've been able to hold a couple of pretty cool guns. I hope he never has to take care of a normal baby, though. In general, I notice that the lack of common sense among the three stooges is fairly unsafe, but useful in my case. Finally reaching the bottom of the stairs, Bard sets me down carefully, squatting low to place me on the floor. I wobble on my feet for a second before regaining my shaky balance, my instability only reviving Bard's teasing smirk. Annoyed, I decide to use the power as an adorable baby and latch onto his, feigning myself tripping into his chest. Flustered, Bard holds me stead with his hands, unprepared for me to give him a loud kiss on his cheek. A deep blush spread across his face, marking my mission successful.

Satisfied with my retribution, I start to toddle away giggling, cursing my legs as they give way in only four steps. I can hear Bard's chuckle behind me as he watches me struggle to get back up and continue my way to the library. I found that the library is the best place to settled down, books upon books ready for my consumption. Luckily, everything's in English and I just have to ignore all the extra fancy wording to understand the underlying message of the books. As you would think from Victorian England, a lot of the science is off and a lot of technology has yet to be developed. However, I've found myself immersed in books about herbs! To be honest, my main interest is medicine, as I had been striving towards a career in pharmacy in my past life. Honestly, I hadn't gotten very far, since I died during my early years of university, but I'm not completely clueless either. I had somehow gotten an internship at a pharmacy during high school, a feat only possible thanks to my connection with the owner's daughter. There, they were one of the few compounding pharmacies, focusing on hormone therapy despite the harsh government regulations. I learned a lot about the process of making medications and started it myself after high school and earning my technician's license which allowed me to work with medication legally. During the time I couldn't work with medication, I started making concoctions at home with herbs which became my hobby.

Now that I've finally settled into my new life, I'd like to regain some of the joys I had. I don't know how much Sebastian gets paid, but I don't see him as the type that will easily buy me herbs and medication ingredients as I want. Even if he were willing to splurge on my demands, as a butler he rarely goes into town unless it's with the young master. Therefore, I'll have to make my own supply. If that's the case, I'll hold off on compounding for now and focus on growing my own herbs. None of my plants in my previous life survived past a week with me, so I'll make sure to read up on growing my precious ingredients. Ah, what should I make first? Maybe some shampoo and conditioner for my hair. Their hygiene products are severely lacking. My hair remains coarse even after washing it thoroughly and the body wash barely foams up. Yeah, this should probably be my first step so I don't get sick.

Engulfed in my excited planning, I don't notice the footsteps behind me until a shadow engulfs my vision. I turn back to see Mr. Lin, his ever smiling face still plastered on as usual. Surprisingly, I see Ran Mao standing by the doorway, simply watching her brother approach me with his unreadable grin. I've found that between him and Madam Red, I prefer Mr. Laufor many reasons. I also can't help but to enjoy her frustrated face whenever I show my favor towards the Chinese man. Still, I'd much rather finish this chapter on herbal gardens then interact with such a shady man. Reluctantly, though careful not to show it on my face, I leave my book and rush over to Mr. Lin, beaming brightly as I bound over. He bends out and holds out his arms for me to hug him, something I'm grateful for as I again stumble on my own uncoordinated feet and barely catch myself with his arms.

"Win!" I babble cheerfully, doing my best to subdue my incoming twitch of annoyance at my ever present lips.

"Ah, the little miss greets me with such enthusiasm," he chuckles, picking me up into the air. I let out a giggle at his antics, letting out little shrieks of joy as he tosses me up and catches me. Yeah, even I can't resist the thrill of being launched up a bit and knowing I'll be safely caught. Ah, but again I can smell this sweet scent from Mr. Lin, one that nags at the back of my head. What is it? I can't remember.

"You damn, rat!" the voice of Madam Red booms, effectively putting an end to my little ride. Mr. Lau and I turn to see her fuming at the doorway, a deep frown engraved into her face. "Do you have no manners?" she spits, folding her arms angrily. "You don't even greet my darling nephew first even though you are his guest!" Ah, I guess that is pretty rude. "And I wanted to hold little Rika first!" she adds, stating her real reason of anger. Are you two sure you're both adults? With some effort, Madam Red manages to get Mr. Lau to go greet the young master, giving me a tight embrace before running off to the drawing room. I want to return to my book, but the very loud sound of my stomach growling out is enough to convince me otherwise. I change my destination to today;s feeder on duty: Mey-Rin. The routine the servants have adapted to feed me is alright, though it doesn't take into account how forgetful the three stooges are about when to feed me. In the mornings, Sebastian feeds me after getting me ready for the day. He goes ahead and prepares my lunch as well so that the other servants only need to warm it up a bit or feed it to me cold. They switch duties each day, rotating amidst themselves and keeping track with a calendar. Then by dinner time, so long as Sebastian isn't out late with the young mater, Sebastian feeds me again.

It takes me a while to just exit the library, my little butt and knees sore from the number of times I've fallen over this morning. Looking around, I wonder where to start. It's laundry day so she might be outside washing all the clothes or hanging them up. Or maybe she's upstairs cleaning rooms. Better yet, maybe she remembered my lunch and is warming it up now! ... Yeah, that's not happening. I should hold back on the wishful thinking, it makes me depressed. With little direction to steer me in, I decide to head off to the garden. If Mey-Rin isn't there, I'll just ask Finny to find her or feed me instead. I don't have the stamina to check everywhere, especially if I want it done in a timely fashion.

What I didn't think about, I realize as I approach the door leading to the garden, is that I can't even open a damn door. I stare silently at the sudden boss encounter, wondering what type of attack would be super effective. Yeah, none. Look around, I notice the old steward sipping at his tea leisurely as usual, his body generally directing at me. I think he's looking at me? I can't tell. Either way, without any means of opening it myself and knowing the deflated Tanaka wouldn't be able to carry me around, I waddle over to him. Pointing at the door, I gurgle out, "Tanana, 'oor!" God, my speech! Luckily, it seems he understands because the old man slowly makes his way to where I was pointing. His pace is slow enough that I can keep up without falling over, an accomplishment I realized I would never do on my own because of my impatience. I watch in wonder to see how the little man would go about opening the door for me, watching intently as he lets out his little laugh. In a fluid movement, the steward jumped up, flipping a few times in the air and dramatically kicked the door handle to unlock the door and launched himself away, opening the door for me. I stare in shock, wondering how I should react to the idle man's sudden show of amazing reflexes. I give up on thinking too much when I hear his usual sipping, and decide to continue on my way. Yeah, it's better not to think about it. I've realized that there's no such thing as normal here.

As I step outside, I immediately hear the off beat singing of the little gardener as he waters the plants happily. The unsteady lawn is hard for me to thread to, the dirt on my knees a testimony to my struggles. Finally reaching the oblivious gardener, I reach out and tug on his shorts. "Fwimmy," I call out, earning his surprised gaze.

"Rika!" he cries, pausing his water. Setting down the hose, be bends down and scoops me up, eyeing my dirty knees. "How did you get out? Are you hurt anywhere?" he asks, examining my arms for any signs of cuts. I shake my head, laughing a bit at his mother-like worry.

"Fwood! Mey-Win!" I cry, pointing at my open mouth to accentuate how hungry I was. In my defense, walking to the library, dealing with our weird guests and going outside works up a appetite.

"Oh, you're looking for Mey-Rin cause you're hungry!" he nods, understanding my gestures and broken words. I won't even question why he's not surprised I know who's on rotation, despite being a baby. Nope. "I think she's hanging up some clothes in the back," Finny mumbles, following expectations of finding the klutzy maid. Luckily, he's spot on and we find Mey-Rin wringing white shirts in the back. Finny raises his hand to gesture a hello, but the sound of cotton ripping shuts him up. Apparently wringing too hard, the shirt in the maid's hand is now torn at the stomach. Oh dear.

"Oh no!" she cries, holding the torn pieces together as if it would magically fix itself. "That's the fourth shirt already, it is!" she sighs, dropping the torn clothing into a pile of other ripped shirts next to her. She than holds up a familiar pair of shorts, ones that I quickly realize are extremely similar to the ones Finny wears everyday.

"Ah! M-Mey-Rin!" he cries out, noticing the same thing as me. "How about you take a break from laundry and feed Rika?" Finny suggests, eyeing his bottoms with desperation. I wonder how many pieces of clothes Finny and Bard have lost so far.

"Hm? Oh, Finny!" she grins, setting down his shorts much to the gardener's relief. "Is it time for Rika's lunch already?" she asks curiously, trotting over to us.

"Yes, she came looking for you all by herself," Finny puffs out proudly, as if it was his own accomplishment. Mey-Rin joins him in their fawning, and I'm left wondering if neither of them found it strange that I'm developing so fast. Both Sebastian and Ciel have noted that I'm progressing months faster than normal infants and have taken note of it. Then again, they think that I'm Sebastian's biological daughter. I would assume if he really did have a daughter, she would be amazingly developed as well. But I don't think she would be human either. For now, I know that I have no super natural powers but I have vivid memories of my past life. Hopefully that and my strange hair and eye color are all the abnormalities I'll have to face.

I'm pulled out of my thoughts when I feel Finny shifting his hold on me to hand me to Mey-Rin. Personally, I like being held by men, as I was a very healthy young woman in my past life. All the men around me are attractive in their own way so I like to be near them for the eye candy. However, Mey-Rin isn't a bad baby holder either, the two lumps on her chest making for nice cushioning. I will say that I think mine were bigger in my previous body though.

"Alright, let's go get you fed," the clumsy maid beams with determination. No need to get so excited, it only assures that something's going to go wrong. In her excitement, Mey-Rin starts to dash with me in her arms, causing me to reflexively cling onto her neck. Wait! Don't run! You're going to- Just as I was predicting, I feel her lift up into the air, her own two feet being the culprit of tripping her. I close my eyes tight, bracing myself, cursing my decision to let her hold me instead of just doing my best to keep up with her by her side. Just as I expect myself to land face first into the wooden floor, I find myself landing on a rather cushy surface. Peeking through my fear, I find myself on top of a tower, Bard being at the bottom, Mey-Rin stacked above him and Finny just below me. I can hear them groan in unison, rumbling my little platform.

"Mey-Rin! Sebastian told ya not to run in the manor," Bard gruffly groans out, ruffling his hair as he stares pointedly at the said maid.

"S-sorry!" she squeaks, trying to get up without luck since Finny and I are still on top of her.

"At least Rika's alright!" Finny strains, a smile on his face as he pulls me into a hug. Gah, I thought you were the adults here! We stay still for a few moments, just relaxing before another rumble in the tower suggests one of them is trying to get up.

"Gah, get off me you lot! You're heavy!" Bard growls, trying to push himself up, only to fall back down to his chest with all of us on his back. Realizing that he was crushing his companions, Finny quickly got up with me in hand, apologizing to the chef. Bouncing off Bard, Mey-Rin joined on the apology, the two helping the defeated chef up to his feet. "Alright, so I guess you were probably headin' to the kitchen to feed out little miss," Bard sighs, taking me into his arms. He rubs my head, seemingly soothing himself with the strange act. "Since you two crushed me, I'll be taking up the duty today and tomorrow," he grins, walking away. The other two, however, aren't pleased with his announcement.

"No! Today's my turn!" Mey-Rin screeches, grabbing onto the cook with down turned eyebrows.

"And tomorrow's my turn!" Finny protests, latching on with Mey-Rin. Bard grunts as he tries to shake them off.

"I was just the bottom of a dog pile for you two!" he reminds them, slowly dragging them towards the kitchen with him.

"We didn't ask you to!"

"But I still was!"

"So what?"

Their bickering when on for a few minutes until my stomach voiced it's concerns again, ending their rants. They glance at me with guilty expressions, falling into silence for a moment before Mey-Rin spoke up. "I guess we can all feed you together, we can," she mutters, shoulders sagging slightly.

"Yeah, let's do that," Bard sighs, also giving in. I do my best to make my snickering look like my usual baby giggle as I watch their defeated exchange.

* * *

"It seems you've had an exciting day," Sebastian hums as he sets me down in the warm bath, a sigh escaping my lips as I'm engulfed in the warm water. I ignore his amused smile, watching him pull off his gloves. I was too flustered to notice this before, but that's up with that pentagram on your hand? Is that a tattoo? Oh! Were you part of some delinquent band back in your time? Like a screamo rock band! A silent snicker shook my body as I thought about my elegant father dressed up in ripped clothes and wearing eccentric makeup. In all seriousness, I do wonder what it is. I'm sure I've seen this before."Razenshia. Razenshia." Oh, it's the same scene from before. The same boy is looking at me from above my broken form. It hurts again. But I need to remember why that pentagon looks familiar. I know I've seen it before. But where? Ah, everything's getting blurry. I guess I won't be able to find it this time. My eyes turn up to look at the captivating stained glass art once again, the bright colors soothing my mind. I ignore the chains and slowly reach out, as if I could catch the colorful light in my hand.

* * *

"Hm, are you trying to reach for something?" Sebastian's smooth voice breaks me out of my stupor, the rundown church around me suddenly replaced with the serine bathroom. My hand is stretched out towards the dark butler, freezing just short of his arm. I shut my eyes for a second, regaining my bearings before giving him an innocent giggle to cover my flustered state. Since my hand is already reaching out, I decide to change it's course to his left hand. I'm careful to keep a curious look on my face, taking up his hand and gazing the strange, black mark. I can feel Sebastian's calculating gaze burn into me as I examine his hand. I suppress my urge to touch it, my gut warning me that it would only bring me trouble. Instead, I take to holding his hand and memorizing the details. I let go soon after a few moments, knowing that Sebastian and Ciel are still weary of me.

"Papa?" I whine, pointing at his frozen sponge. Hey, I want to finish this bath before the water chills. That, and I'd like it if you'd stop looking at me so intensely. Without missing a beat, Sebastian's perfect smile returns to his face and his hand returns to scrubbing my limbs gently.

"It seems you're a curious one, Rika," he mutters, clearly enough for me to hear, but softly enough for me to strain my hearing. Moving to stand behind me, he gently rubs shampoo into my hair, softly untangling my messy locks with his unreadable smile. "But you know, Rika," he whispers next to my ear, "curiosity killed the cat."


End file.
